In this week’s unlocking opportunity podcast it is a pleasure to be joined this by the legendary head football coach, Bruce Rollinson from down at Mater Dei high school. Bruce Rollinson is heading into his 31st year as head coach of the monarchs are in 30 seasons he’s won over 300 games, he’s been to the CIF finals 13 times, he’s won 7 CIF championships, 3 state titles, and won the national championship in ‘94, ‘96, 2017 and 2018. How has Coach Rollinson been able to stay the head coach for so long? He is fully bought into everything Mater Dei stands for. You will catch him at different events and always talking about the monarchs at any chance he is given. With every topic we cover in this episode, his passion is evident. Are you a young coach that wants to advance your career? Coach makes it clear that there are many sacrifices that go into becoming a great coach. You must give up some of your free time and also have a great support system. Another key component to advancing your coaching career is to never look at any opportunity as a “stepping stone”. Rollinson says that you must, “sink everything you got into the job you have.” At the end of our time with Coach Rollinson, he left us with a powerful message. “The only person that can beat you, is you.” Do the best you can, be grateful, and give your best effort. For more athletic-related content, visit: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/playbook/ If you'd like to find the easiest way to fundraise, contact an eTeamSponsor Rep: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/contact-us/ Follow us on Social: Twitter: https://twitter.com/eTeamSponsor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eteamsponsor/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eteamsponsor/

“It’s a small world.” A few minutes into episode 22 of #eTSChalkTalk, I realized it was a small world. Having interviewed guests from Florida, Maryland, Texas and what feels like everywhere in between, I learned Coach Lisle literally lived down the street. Our suburban town of 30,000 in the foothills of the east bay was home to the internets most followed baseball and softball coach... AND me. Sometimes you wonder how people become famous. Each story of fame is different. This one truly qualifies as a rags to riches tale. From homeless to the big leagues in all of 10 years. Coach Lisle is the only coach in America to coach at every level. I mean every level. Little league, travel ball, high school, NAIA, D3, D2, D1, and finally, MLB. This is a true story people. So one wonders, how did this happen? As all good stories have, Matt’s journey includes twists and turns and ultimately, many lessons learned. Maturity. How do we get this? How do grow wiser? Coach Lisle points to the difference in who he is now (in 2020) to who he was then (in 2010). “It’s maturity.” He says: “I was a kid then.” He cites the moment that changed him as a coach forever. It was listening to legendary coach and now Matt’s personal mentor, Bruce Brown. It was at the American Baseball Coaching Association conference that he learned to shift his focus from being a transactional coach to a transformational coach. The pivot from being inward focused to becoming outward focused started to take hold. Another aspect of coach’s maturation was a humble confession that he didn’t know everything. As a young coach myself, I remember the insecurity of feeling like I had to act like I knew it all. But there is great wisdom in understanding you don’t. Matt figured this out and grew as a result. He also mentions his witty sarcasm that was often not received well in his early years. Many coaches seem to use their wit and gregarious personality to tear down, instead of build up. Coach Lisle has rectified this to encourage his athletes. Since his own personal transformation, Matt has written a book, spoken at countless public engagements, and lived his dream coaching in the bigs. But his focus is no longer on passion, and more so on his purpose. “Do what you are meant to do to change the world.” This a different message than we are told growing up, but therein lies the secret to his success. Coaches out there, how many of us are trying to just win games? How many of us are trying to make a name for ourselves? Change the world by focusing on the other instead of focusing on yourself. Don’t try to become famous, try to make a difference. You never know who you might impact or where they might live...it’s a small world. For more athletic-related content, visit: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/playbook/ If you'd like to find the easiest way to fundraise, contact an eTeamSponsor Rep: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/contact-us/ Follow us on Social: Twitter: https://twitter.com/eTeamSponsor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eteamsponsor/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eteamsponsor/

We’re back on the lead to win podcast with one of our favorites, Coach Frank Allocco. He’s an esteemed basketball coach, leader in the athletic industry, and is the pride of New Providence New Jersey. He’s a former Notre Dame basketball and football scholarship earnee. He’s had an illustrious career coaching high school basketball here on the West Coast as well as founding Excel basketball camps. He has gone on to win numerous high school national coach of the year awards, has been a part of basketball clinics organizations, the winning edge, and working with basketball programs from professional ranks to college and high school. In this episode, Coach Allocco presents us with the idea of tradition and culture being the foundation of all successful teams. We go into depth about how he incorporated these ideals into every program he ran and turned average teams into championship teams. Coach Allocco is now at the University of San Francisco where he serves as Sr, Associate Athletic Director. He touches on a subject that is dear to us, providing opportunity. “Give to kids for their future.” He says that right now is the most important time to give to any athletic programs due to the financial impact of Covid-19. As we found out in our chat with him, Coach Allocco’s Excel basketball camps came to be because of the impact a coach had on him. The camps have turned out to be a community favorite. Not only are the athletes improving their basketball skills, but they are also learning more about how to navigate the game of life. Frank Allocco has had an impact on so many athletes and now coaches. When asked what advice he gives coaches, he said that it is important to find different approaches for different kids. Find what gets them motivated. We are so thankful for the time we spent with him. If you want to hear more from Coach Frank Allocco, check out his website 👇🏼 https://frankallocco.com/ For more athletic-related content, visit: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/playbook/ If you'd like to find the easiest way to fundraise, contact an eTeamSponsor Rep: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/contact-us/ Follow us on Social: Twitter: https://twitter.com/eTeamSponsor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eteamsponsor/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eteamsponsor/

In this episode, we had the pleasure of sitting down with our great friend, Christina Hundley. We learn how she went from the bay area to becoming the Athletic Director at Paradise Valley CC in Arizona. She is quick to drop wisdom in this episode as she begins talking about leadership. Christina explains that coaching autonomy has been key to the athletic department's success. She knows that her coaches were hired for a reason and they are the experts on the athletes. We also talked about the importance of networking in any position. Christina says, "you should not be afraid to pick up the phone or write an email to someone who inspires you." It is easy to see that she is passionate about what she does because she is always seeking opportunities to grow. She left us with the empowing message of, "be passionate enough about what you do, that you want to do it for yourself." Tune in to hear more from Christina Hundley. For more athletic-related content, visit: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/playbook/ If you'd like to find the easiest way to fundraise, contact an eTeamSponsor Rep: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/contact-us/ Follow us on Social: Twitter: https://twitter.com/eTeamSponsor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eteamsponsor/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eteamsponsor/

To start off our basketball edition of #eTSChalkTalk, we feature none other than Califonia’s all-time winningest girls basketball coach, Kevin Kiernan of Mater Dei high school. In this episode, we talk about all things basketball. Fun fact, Kevin and his wife are both head coaches of basketball teams. Talk about a basketball family! He talks about how great it felt to win a state title with his daughter on the team, and how she will go from playing for him in her high school career to playing for her Mom at Concordia University Irvine. Has this ever been done?! Along with the great stories Kevin shares about his time coaching at different schools, he talked about his passion for player development. “It is not enough to just play hard anymore.” A player must embrace competition every day, not just on game day. He continues to say that players must be coachable to get to the next level. Another important piece on the journey to the next level is recruiting. Coach Kiernan does a great job sharing some tips when it comes to finding the right school to continue your academic and athletic career. Tune into our first basketball edition of Chalk Talk this season! For more athletic-related content, visit: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/playbook/ If you'd like to find the easiest way to fundraise, contact an eTeamSponsor Rep: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/contact-us/ Follow us on Social: Twitter: https://twitter.com/eTeamSponsor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eteamsponsor/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eteamsponsor/

For more athletic-related content, visit: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/playbook/ If you'd like to find the easiest way to fundraise, contact an eTeamSponsor Rep: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/contact-us/ Follow us on Social: Twitter: https://twitter.com/eTeamSponsor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eteamsponsor/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eteamsponsor/

These times have been challenging for most. The return of athletics in California has been pushed back to winter and spring of next year. This week we get some of the inside scoop on the conversations that led to these decisions. in this week's podcast, we feature Rob Wigod and David Grissom of CIF's Southern and Central Coast sections. They take us through the plans for upcoming sports seasons, what leadership has looked like in the CIF, and plans for the future. For more athletic-related content, visit: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/playbook/ If you'd like to find the easiest way to fundraise, contact an eTeamSponsor Rep: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/contact-us/ Follow us on Social: Twitter: https://twitter.com/eTeamSponsor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eteamsponsor/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eteamsponsor/

“I hate dealing with parents.” “I don’t deal with my parents.” Ever heard a coach say that before? Maybe you have even been one! Maybe you are one. Most coaches say they get into coaching to impact young people’s lives with life lessons. To promote character, integrity and honor. Of course, they say they want to win too. But in order to accomplish this, coaches often find themselves fighting an uphill battle in regards to player discipline. Sound familiar? Your best player misses practice. Or is late for morning workouts. Then there is the issue of parent’s being “too involved” for some coaches. My kid isn’t playing enough. Why didn’t you start Jimmy tonight? Again, sound familiar? Bad memories are potentially flooding in for some of you. Enter Coach Reed. A thought leader in the high school football coaching world. Our time, and hopefully yours if you choose to invest in it, was TRANSFORMATIVE. Coach Reed has done something most HS football coaches would only dream of: eliminated player issues regarding tardiness and unexcused practice absences. How? It’s simple. Honest and regular parent communication. How does a man who receives 500-600 DM’s per week do this? He makes himself regularly available to his parents. He sets 4 parent team meetings per year. He tells them the truth. And he finds out the truth regarding his players. As he confesses, “kids between 14-25 are just going to lie sometimes, it’s what they do.” Coach Reed also says he wasn’t a very good communicator himself at age 16, a reminder to us all of our awkward high school selves. The key is to be one step ahead of the players by having consistent communication with the parents. This way you know if they actually have work during practice like they might say to you. You’ll know if someone recently passed away in their family. You’ll know if they might be going through something else that they haven’t told you about. You’ll know if they have a dentist or doctor appointment. Coach Reed dropped my jaw to the floor when he told me he has a blissful relationship with his parents. No drama. No pettiness. Just truth telling, honesty and a desire for all to help these student athletes get better in every area of life. His message couldn’t be more needed for so many programs out there. The moral of the story is this: parents do not have to be the enemy. Make them an ally by bringing them into your football family. It will make an incredible difference for your program. Fresh of a Class 2 MO state championship, and multiple players signing to play at the next level, if you want to grow in a major way as a coach, listen to this! For more info for the parents of your program, make sure to refer your parents to Coach Reed’s twitter profile, which features resources for them: https://twitter.com/CoachReed314. For more athletic-related content, visit: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/playbook/ If you'd like to find the easiest way to fundraise, contact an eTeamSponsor Rep: https://www.eteamsponsor.com/contact-us/ Follow us on Social: Twitter: https://twitter.com/eTeamSponsor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eteamsponsor/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eteamsponsor/

“Football is a vehicle to become someone better than your immediate self.” In this episode, we bring on a very special guest and football legend, Coach Bob Ladouceur, former head coach of De La Salle High School. He led the Spartan’s to a 151-game winning streak and 6 National Championships. Tune in as we talk about the culture and the lasting impact of De La Salle football.

On this week's episode we have coach Kenny Simpson. He is currently the Head Football Coach Searcy High School, a 6A school in Arkansas. He accepted the job at Searcy in June of 2020. Before Searcy, he was the Head Football Coach at Southside Charter. Taking over a program that had won eight games in five seasons and had been on a 20+ game losing streak, Simpson has led Southside to the playoffs for four-consecutive seasons and won two conference titles in the past three seasons. For his efforts, he was named 4A-2 Conference Coach of the Year (2017), named to the as a finalist for Hooten's Coach of the Year (2017) and has been the All-Star Nominee for the 4A-2 (2016 and 2019). He was also selected to coach in the 1st FCA Texas-Arkansas All-Star Showdown (2020). Coach Simpson wrote his first book in 2019. Another book is already in the works and will be available in 2020. Find A Way: What I Wish I'd Known When I Became A Head Football Coach, has already been a best seller on Amazon in several categories. In this week's episode, he talks about how he creates a safe environment for his student-athletes, the importance of valuing your wife and making time for her during your coaching career, and his cruise he puts on with FCA. We also hit the quick two-minute drill with coach as he takes us through the buck sweep method.